Back

1. Presidential candidates face off in first debate 

The first presidential debate organized by the National Electoral Institute (INE) took place. Although the exercise aroused criticism due to the rigidity of the format and failures in the time counting, the three candidates for the Presidency of the Republic were able to contrast ideas and present their projects for the country on issues such as health, education, violence against women, the fight against corruption and transparency, as well as non-discrimination and vulnerable groups.

Most of the opinion leaders agreed that Claudia Sheinbaum, from the coalition “Sigamos Haciendo Historia”, was the one who came out of the meeting with the best results, as she did not get caught up in the questions asked, followed by the candidate of the Movimiento Ciudadano Party, Jorge Álvarez Máynez. On the other hand, Xóchitl Gálvez, from the “Fuerza y Corazón por México” coalition, was accused of appearing nervous and of not being able to consolidate her criticisms to the leading candidate. The second debate will take place on April 28 without the possibility of substantial changes in the format.

CNN: Resumen del debate presidencial en México entre Sheinbaum, Gálvez y Máynez, en vivo: reacciones, discursos, fact-check y más

El País: ¿Quién ha ganado el debate presidencial? Siete expertos dan su veredicto

2. Mexican government breaks off relations with Ecuador and goes to the International Court of Justice

The Mexican government decided to break diplomatic relations with the government of Ecuador. This after military forces of the South American country broke into the Mexican embassy with the aim of capturing the former vice president Jorge Glas, who was convicted of corruption and was a refugee in the diplomatic headquarters since December. That same day in the morning, the government of Daniel Noboa had declared the Mexican ambassador, Raquel Serur, persona non grata, in response to the declarations of President Lopez Obrador in which he implied that Noboa won the elections thanks to the assassination of the presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio.

With 29 votes in favor, the Organization of American States condemned the raid to the Mexican embassy and accused the Ecuadorian government of Daniel Noboa of having violated the Vienna Convention and the asylum policy. For the time being, Mexican diplomatic personnel are already in Mexico and the Mexican government has gone before the International Court of Justice requesting, among other things, that Ecuador be expelled from the United Nations.

BBC: 5 claves para entender la crisis diplomática de México con Ecuador tras la irrupción policial en la embajada mexicana en Quito

El País: La OEA condena “enérgicamente” el asalto de Ecuador a la Embajada mexicana

Milenio: México pide que Ecuador salga de la ONU hasta que disculpe por irrupción a embajada en Quito

3. Court declares food labeling constitutional

The plenary session of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) declared the constitutionality of various provisions regarding the labeling of food and non-alcoholic beverages, which have been in force since 2020, stating that this is a constitutionally valid measure which aims to: a) provide information on the content of products associated with risk factors for the development of diseases such as diabetes and hypertension; b) protect the rights to health, nutritious food, the protection of consumer rights and the best interests of the child.

The highest court of the country pointed out that it is a proportional measure, since the advantages obtained for the population in general are greater than the sacrifices or disadvantages caused to the producers, in addition to the fact that, during the procedure carried out for the elaboration of the above-mentioned official standard, no invalidating violations were committed.

Suprema Corte: La Corte declara la constitucionalidad de diversas disposiciones en materia de etiquetado de alimentos y bebidas no alcohólicas preenvasados

4. Senate Committees endorse amparo and amnesty reforms

The Justice and Second Legislative Studies Committees of the Senate approved two important amendments. The first one establishes that in the case of amparo proceedings that resolve the unconstitutionality of general norms, in no case will the suspensions issued establish general effects. The second provides for the power to grant amnesty directly by exclusive decision of the head of the federal Executive Branch in specific cases where the beneficiary provides useful information to clarify the truth in cases relevant to the State, and is being prosecuted, has been sentenced or has been prosecuted for any crime.

These amendments were strongly criticized by opposition legislators, who pointed out that in the first case, the rights not only of the complainants but of the entire population are violated in the face of laws that potentially affect human rights. Regarding the amnesty, it has been pointed out that this reform obeys more to a political and electoral logic to pardon certain criminals than to a justice reason. For the time being, it is expected that the modifications will be discussed by the full Senate next week and it has been announced that, if approved, they will be taken to the Court.

El Economista: Avanza reforma que impide por amparo suspender leyes

Expansión Política: Avanza iniciativa de amnistía: Ejecutivo podrá liberar delincuentes

5. Morena deputies propose to dispose of resources from afores

The coordinator of the Morena bench in the Chamber of Deputies, Ignacio Mier Velazco, and the Morena federal deputy, Ivonne Cisneros Luján, have proposed that the resources of the Afores whose holders have reached 70 years of age and have not been claimed become part of the Pension Fund for Welfare, which has not yet been created, but was proposed within President López Obrador’s initiative on the matter and which is already being discussed in committees.

In this way, such fund would have another source of financing, in addition to the income from the Institute to Return to the People what has been Stolen or the resources obtained from the closing of Financiera Rural Agency. It is estimated that with this proposal, between 30,000 and 40,000 million pesos would be sent to such fund. Although the initiative has yet to be discussed and approved by the Social Security Committee, in order to later pass to the plenary, the Budget and Public Account Committee has already issued a positive opinion on its budgetary impact.

El Economista: Proponen financiar reforma de pensiones de AMLO con ahorros de personas de 70 años que no reclaman su Afore